Prompts
by Wild-Bananas
Summary: You give me prompts, I give you stories. Sound like a fair trade?
1. Chapter 1

**So the big idea of this is to be a collection of short little drabble-like stories. Thus, I'm calling on all of you people reading this for help. Give me prompts. (It could be anything, really!Anyone who reads my stuff know most of my stories come out of weird little prompts. I've already written stories based off the words 'shawarma,' 'dining room table,' and 'science buddy,' so I'm inclined to believe I can work with just about anything!)**

**Seriously, just leave any prompt you can think of (anything from one word to a couple sentences even), and I'll root through for my favorite ones and write little stories off them.**

**The plan is to have a new story every day. We'll see how that goes...**

**Also, I'll try to range out to all of the Avengers, but expect lots of Tony Stark.**

**Yay! This'll be fun!**

**I've already got the first few ideas. Expect the first chapter tomorrow!**


	2. Secrets

**Prompt 1: Secrets**

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**I have too many tests to study for to be writing this much in one day. Regardless, here's Chapter 1, a bit earlier than planned. I have to admit, I'm underwhelmed by myself. I wanted Tony to be a bit fluffier than usual, but he seems _too_ lovey-gushy, not how I usually do him.**

**This takes place immediately after Iron Man 2, so I guess I can say he's just all gooey because it's the very early days of him and Pepper being together...  
**

**Anyway, enjoy!  
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Tony Stark is a very talented man. He is an expert in many fields of study, namely a handful of types of engineering, he created an Artificial Intelligence before the age most people graduate college, he created a suit of armor that can 'fly and shoot laser beams,' as his fans liked to say, and most recently, he achieved cold fusion in his basement to create a new element. For the longest time, though, one of his favorite talents was his uncanny ability to get women into bed with him. He hardly had to breathe in the vicinity of a woman, and suddenly he had a date for the night. Now, this skill of his barely mattered to him, and he all but ignored the woman throwing themselves at his feet. A week ago, he kissed a woman for the first time, and a deeper part of him acknowledged that he would never want to be with anyone else ever again.

Pepper.

He played it cool with her, didn't let her see just how much she meant to him, but he could never live without her (especially now, since he escaped the palladium poisoning and he actually _was_ going to live).

However, such personal epiphanies couldn't be explained to the press without gossip and rumors and obnoxious paparazzi, so they decided (Pepper decided) to keep their relationship from the press, at least until it was on more solid ground.

Yet, with all Tony Stark's many talents, keeping secrets was not one of them. Rhodey already knew, which didn't make much of a difference because regardless of Pepper's executive decision, Tony would have ended up spilling to his best friend within minutes of talking to him. Nick Fury and Natashalie knew, which was fine by him. Being able to say the words, 'I'm in a stable relationship,' sort of made his day, even if he could only say them to Captain Eye Patch (and even if the words actually came out as 'stable-ish relationship.' No need to jinx it).

Even with the handful of people who knew, the secret was eating at him, as secrets always do. This one was the worst, though, because when he was in public, he actually had to _pretend_ that there was nothing between him and Pepper. He couldn't even put his arm around her, or hold her hand, or dip her down and kiss her like a madman in front of a room of reporters with flashing cameras (ok, even if their relationship was common knowledge, he still doubted he could get away with that last one). When they were in meetings together, usually dealing with Pepper's stepping down or cleanup at the Expo, Tony's foot would tap restlessly on the floor as he stared at her, wanting to yell to the entire room that Pepper Potts was his _girlfriend_! God, he needed to say the word _girlfriend_ to someone so badly it hurt, even if the word made him think of zitty teenagers and their prom dates.

Unfortunately, it was in this state of near implosion from frustration that Tony found himself on a late night talk show. He hated talk shows. _Who even booked this thing?_ He was wondering. He knew it wasn't Pepper. She hadn't booked him a talk show since the Ellen DeGeneres Disaster.

Regardless, welcoming music started playing, and Tony was soon ushered onto the stage and seated on a sofa. He had to keep reminding himself to 'play nice,' as Pepper had warned, as the host asked him about Iron Man and the hearing he'd had a few weeks ago over the armor, about Justin Hammer and the Hammer Drone ('Hammeroid,' Tony corrected) attack on the expo, and about Lieutenant Colonel James Rhodes apparently holding on to Tony's stolen suit. Finally, when his time was almost up, the host pulled out his last topic:

"For all the interested ladies out there, Tony, we want to know: Is Iron Man looking for an Iron Woman?" The host wiggled his eyebrows suggestively (which looked stupid) and Tony faked a good-natured laugh.

"I can't say I am," he admitted, and before he could stop himself, more followed. "I've actually got a girlfriend." Sweet relief. "A serious girlfriend, for the first time."

"Oh do you now!" he host asked. "Well come on then, who is she?"

Now he'd done it. He was mentally kicking himself. Why _why_ did he have to say it? Why did he have to say anything?! _Because you feel amazing and you want to tell the whole world,_ he reminded himself. _Well don't give Pepper up, at least. Tell them it's a secret. Leave it a mystery._

"Pepper Potts." _Damn it._

He went home that night expecting Pepper to be livid. He felt like an idiot, like a jackass. But a part of him was just so glad to have done it, which just made him feel worse, made him feel selfish in the one instance he cared.

Pepper was sitting at the dining room table in his Malibu home when he got there, papers spread out and her computer set up. She was working. She didn't even look up when Tony came into the house.

"Pepper, I'm… Well, I'm sorry," he said. It occurred to him that he didn't even remember the last time he directly apologized to anyone, and he made a mental note to make sure he didn't fall behind again, at least when it came to Pepper.

She sighed, turned off her laptop, and gathered up her papers. The silence was killing him. Couldn't she say _something_!

"It's alright," she finally conceded. She packed all her things into her bag and made to leave.

"Stay here tonight," he offered, grabbing one of her hands to stop her from getting past him. "It's late."

"The tabloids will have a field day," she argued, though she didn't move to pull her hand from him.

"They'll get over it." He shrugged. "Besides, at least it's true this time."

She smiled. Smiling was good. "I guess it is."

"I'm really sorry," he repeated.

"I know you are, and I know you can't keep secrets."

"This one lasted longer than the Iron Man one did, at least."

She laughed. Laughing was even better than smiling. "I suppose it did." She planted a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you for trying. I'm just dreading dealing with people tomorrow," she admitted.

He grinned and squeezed her hand. "We can do it together."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Sleep over?" he asked hopefully.

She rolled her eyes, but laughed. "Alright then."

He grabbed her hips with his free hand and pulled her in for a kiss. She dropped her bag and kissed him back, and he was _so_ happy this wasn't a secret anymore.

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**So there we go. Hopefully Tony wasn't _horribly_ Love and Sprinkles and Unicorns, though I think I was pushing it...**

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**Thank you to everyone who submitted prompts! I had two set up before I started writing, so I won't be choosing one of yours until the third installment, but I look forward to it! I would like to point out, however, that a lot of people are sending me scenarios instead of prompts. Just to clear it up, prompts are like, vague words or phrases, or a sentence or two that makes you want to build a story around it. Scenarios are actual story ideas. **

**For example, a prompt could be "dancing," or "he wouldn't have traded that dance for the world." From either of these, a hundred stories could pop forward. It could be a Tony POV of the fireman's gala in the first Iron Man movie, or it could be Clint and Natasha working undercover at some formal event.**

**On the other hand, saying "Thor invites Jane to Asgard for a festival of fine dining and dancing" is a scenario. It doesn't actually say what goes down in the story, I'll admit, but it already sets up the scene.**

**Moral of the story: Prompts, not scenarios!  
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**And again, thank you to everyone who sent in ideas! :)  
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**(God, now I want to go write _all _of those stories about dancing!)  
**


	3. Dancing

**Prompt 2: Dancing**

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**So yes, it turns out**** that the second prompt actually is "dancing," and that wasn't entirely just an example at the end of the last chapter. Spoiler alert: I actually already spoiled this story in the end AN of the last chapter. I've fixed it now, but if you've already read it, well, sorry.  
**

**This is a short one, but I think these one-a-day ones might end up generally being on the short side.  
**

**Anyhoo, I give you, for the first time, Captain America: The First Avenger!  
**

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Steve was at one of Stark's events. He wasn't sure why he had come, or even how he had gotten invited (Pepper must have been in charge of the guest list, he reasoned). All of the Avengers were there; Clint sulking in the corner, Natasha blending into the crowd and talking politely with another guest, Bruce anxiously trying to stay in the least crowed section of the hall, Thor laughing too loudly at some scared man's joke. Tony, of course, was surrounded by a group of admirers at the bar, where he stood arm over shoulder with a man who looked shockingly like him.

And yet, something about the whole party seemed off. It was like his brain was trying to notice little things that were out of place, but he just couldn't see them. It didn't register as odd to him at the time that everyone was dressed in the black tie of the 1940's instead of modern clothes. It didn't seem strange that the man Tony was huddled with was a young version of his father. It wasn't weird that Natasha was currently making small talk with Bucky in the middle of the room. And there was certainly nothing wrong with the fact that Peggy, young and radiant and beautiful as ever in a floor length golden gown, was walking towards him now with a smile on her face.

Somewhere deep down, Steve knew he _should_ be confused, but he really didn't care.

"Evening, Captain," she said with a smile as she approached him.

He picked his jaw off the floor and responded, "Evening, Peggy."

She smiled at him, a genuine, beautiful smile, and the sight took his breath away.

"I believe you owe me a dance," she teased.

Alarm bells went off in his head. This was important. This was a big clue to something he _needed_ to remember. He ignored them. "I'd be happy to oblige," he said instead, holding out his arm. She took it, and he led her to the dance floor. She smiled as he put one hand on her waist and she put hers on his shoulder. Their other hands connected, and their fingers intertwined, and they began to dance. The song was a waltz, but despite knowing he couldn't waltz, Steve was owning the floor with grace. Together, they spun and twirled, Peggy's dress fanning out and winding back to cling to her legs during the faster spins. The music slowed, and Peggy rested her head on Steve's shoulder.

Steve spoke, the words preceding thought, "I wish we could have had the chance to dance together, Peggy." He confused himself with the statement (they just _did_ dance, what was he talking about?), but Peggy seemed to agree with him.

"I know," she said. "Me too." She planted a kiss on his lips, quick and chaste, and then walked away.

He wanted to call after her, but as she left, the room full of people seemed to drain out of existence in her wake. Soon, there was nothing left but a golden spark of light where Peggy and her dress had faded into the distance, and when that was gone too, Steve woke up.

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**Alright, tomorrow is reader prompt suggestion day! I've been looking through all the suggestions, and I think I know which one I'm going to use first, but I'm not going to announce it yet, just in case I change my mind...**

**Thanks again to everyone who sends in prompts, and extra thanks to people who commented on the last story! I usually try to respond to all the comments on my stories, but I guess I'm making an exception for this one (sorry!). So if you review, just know that I love you just that much more!  
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**See you all tomorrow!  
**


	4. Palladium Poisoning

**Prompt 3: Pallad****ium**** Poisoning (Provided by greekgirl211)**

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**I'm already late for a thing I have to go to, so no commentary...**

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The ride back to the States from Monaco upset Tony more than he let on. There was a big issue here. The fact that he'd been attacked by a man with technology to rival his own, after promising the US government that no such technology would exist for years, was troubling, sure, but worse than that– worse than being proved _wrong_ (Tony Stark was never wrong, dammit)– it made him realize something. At his hearing, Hammer had said that Tony wouldn't always be around to play protector, and the idiot hadn't even realized how true that was (ugh. Hammer being _right_ was the only thing worse than Tony being wrong). Tony was dying, and he was dying fast. On top of that, this angry, Russian, wannabe dominatrix, Vanko knew he was dying. Once he was gone, who was there to stand against people like Vanko and protect America, or the World, or Pepper? He'd left his company to Pepper (which was the best thing he could have done for it, he was sure. She made a much better CEO than he ever did), but now he was faced with a bigger question: who could he leave Iron Man to?

The answers was pretty obvious. Rhodey. Even though he was the military's bitch sometimes, there was not a single person on the planet he would trust more with the responsibility of his greatest invention. Less obvious was the only question he had now: How did he give the armor to Rhodey? Sure, on an occasion or two he invited Rhodes to joyride in the silver armor, but if Tony tried to _give_ it to Rhodey, he had no doubt would his friend start questioning his motives. The _last_ thing he needed was to have Rhodey know he was dying. People got so stupid and mushy and pitying when they knew you were going to die, and like Hell was he going to let the last few weeks of his life turn into a Hallmark Channel, sentimental, 'I love you, man,' sob fest.

By Tony's birthday party, he still hadn't thought of a solution to the Rhodes problem, but he tried not to worry about it just then. Tonight was his birthday– his _last_ birthday– and as Natalie-from-Legal had suggested, he was going to do whatever he wanted.

Of course, whatever he wanted stopped when Rhodey suited up. They fought, Tony lost, and as the good Colonel was flying away with the silver armor, Tony almost told JARVIS to override the system and bring the fun-sucker back. Maybe let him spend the night as an Iron Man statue in Tony's now destroyed living room. But he stopped himself. Rhodey had the suit. Sure, it wasn't how Tony thought he would come about it, but he had it now, and Tony hadn't done anything revealing to give it to him.

His secret was safe, and with his legacy split between the only two people he ever trusted, he could now ride out the rest of his life, consequences be damned. He smiled. With business out of the way, he could tackle his _real_ bucket list. He'd always wanted to sit in that giant doughnut…

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**Hope you liked it, and special thanks to greekgirl211 for the prompt!  
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**'Til tomorrow!  
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**-WB  
**


	5. Shapechanging

**Prompt 4: Shapechanging (Provided by jaquelinelittle)**

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**First off, sorry about missing yesterday's update. Life, y'know. But here's today's story (on a rough definition of 'today,' but it's not midnight in my timezone yet so I'm counting it!)  
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**Enjoy!**

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When Bruce was little, he'd wanted superpowers. All little kids want superpowers at one point. When he played heroes with his friends, they chose powers like flying, turning invisible, being super strong. Bruce always chose shape shifting. He loved the freedom of it– he could be whatever he wanted, go wherever he wanted, do whatever he wanted. He was limited only by what he could imagine, and as a bright little kid, be could imagine anything.

Being the Hulk is like shape shifting, Bruce realized once. He'd laughed when he'd realized it. _Careful what you wish for_, he'd recalled sourly. But changing into the Hulk was nothing like the shape changing he'd played as a kid. Back then, he imagined the change to be fun, pleasurable even– controlling yourself and becoming whatever you want to become. He'd liked the power because it meant he used his brain to fight instead of the brawn he was never meant to have. Changing into the Hulk was the opposite. It's like everything he hates pushes out of him at the same time, and it feels like he's going to be ripped to shreds. In a way, he is. Bruce Banner, who is smart and who is peaceful and who is _good_, gets destroyed in those moments. There is no control. Where he once thought shape shifting was about decisions and planning and finding the smart answer to problems instead of just beating things up, he now understands that his superpower, his curse, is the opposite.

Even after the battle in New York, even after he was dubbed a superhero, Bruce still despises his power. Tony calls it a gift. _Right_. Bruce can't come to terms with it, and he knows why. At the end of the day, Bruce Banner never saved the world, Bruce Banner never fought the Chitauri, Bruce Banner never beat up a God. The Hulk did. Even if they are _technically_ the same person, The Hulk is not Bruce-gone-superhero like Iron Man is for Tony. The Hulk doesn't think and reason and plan like Bruce would if he were in control. The Hulk doesn't who to fight and what to fight for like Bruce would. The Hulk doesn't discern friend from enemy from innocent bystander like Bruce would. The Hulk is _not_ Bruce, because when Bruce's shape changes, so does he.

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**Jeez, that was short. I'll try to do a longer one next time :)  
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**As per usual, Thank you to everyone who reviewed and everyone who provided prompts! And of course, special thanks to jaquelinelittle for this one ;) **

**Until tomorrow!  
**


	6. Capsicle

**Prompt 5: "Capsicle" brand name registered trade mark (Provided by jaquelinelittle)**

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**This one was fun. Sorry I used a prompt by the same person two days in a row, I wouldn't have done it normally, but I didn't realize it until afterwards. Then I thought about writing a different story for today and submitting this later, but then I just decided, 'eh, screw it. I _like_ this chapter.' So here it is! I hope you guys like it too, and I promise to use a different person's prompt for tomorrow! Actually, there are a couple people who have reviewed every chapter, and I'm very inclined to use one of theirs ;)  
**

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Tony was in Central Park. Usually, he hated being in Central Park. Sure, the place was pretty cool and all, but there were too many _people_. As much as he loved being famous and recognizable– and he _loved_ being famous and recognizable– he hated it when people thought that they had the right to talk to him just because they recognized him.

Regardless, Pepper had taken _an entire day off_ for the first time in, well, forever, and she wanted to use that freedom to go for a 'stroll' in Central Park. So he was stuck between wanting to spend Pepper's day with Pepper and wanting to avoid the public at all costs. Eventually, the side of him that loved Pepper too damn much won out, so he put on a pair of sunglasses and a stupid looking hat (hopefully, it would be enough to throw off his adoring fans), and together they went for a walk in the park.

They were walking up the Central Park Mall when Tony saw it. At first, he wasn't sure what he had seen; a little kid had the object half in his mouth. But it was red, white, and blue, had gumballs for eyes, and looked shockingly like the notoriously spangled Avenger. Tony tightened his grip on Pepper's hand and practically sprinted towards the nearest ice-cream stand.

"Tony? What in the world–" she tried to ask. But Tony turned his full attention to the board with the ice-cream options on it, and a mischievous smile was stretched across his face.

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There was a knocking on Steve's door.

"Captain Rogers?" a voice asked from the other side.

Steve picked up his shield, and watched the door wearily. Nobody called him Captain anymore. Very few people even knew.

Nothing happened for a few second, then there was knocking again.

"Captain Rogers? I have a delivery for you." The voice broke a few times, like a teenagers might, and Steve lowered his shield. He knew he was being a little paranoid, but alien attacks could do that to a guy. He left the shield by the door when he opened it.

"Hello," he said to the kid standing in front of him. It was, in fact, a teenager. He was a gangly, zitty little thing, but he stood tall with his shoulders back and his chest forward, and Steve was reminded of himself before the super soldier serum.

"Morning, Captain Rogers," the kid greeted. "I have a delivery from Mr. Stark."

It was only then that Steve noticed the high–tech box in one of the kid's hands. He eyed the package wearily as the kid handed it to him. He trusted Stark to not be trying to kill him, but that didn't mean he was sure he was going to _like_ the surprise Iron Man had felt fit to bestow upon him.

"Did Mr. Stark say what it was?" he asked the kid.

"I'm only his courier, Sir," he responded. With that, the kid left.

Steve closed the door and put the mechanical box down on the table. There were beg red letters that said, 'PUSH HERE TO OPEN,' with an even bigger red arrow pointing to a downright huge red button. Steve frowned and wondered if Tony had designed this machine just for him– the instructions seemed an obvious jab at Steve's lack of technological know-how.

He pushed the red button and the metal box... well, 'unfolded' seems a good word for it. Of course, Tony could never settle for something just _opening_. Soon, the box was an elaborate bowl that looked like it would make a good centerpiece on a robot's living room table. Sitting in the bowl was a small package, wrapped in brown paper. Steve picked it up. It was cold, and he wondered if that was what the box was for: to keep it's contents cold. On the paper was scribbled in sharpie: 'I knew I should have trademarked it when I had the chance. I knew it!'

Steve raised an eyebrow, but opened the package. Inside was one of those popsicles they sold in the park. Usually, they were made to look like a cartoon's character's face, but this one was a nondescript face wearing Steve's facemask. In big letters under the picture, the word "CAPSICLE" was written.

Steve rolled his eyes.

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**Thanks to everyone who reviewed and suggested prompts, and special thanks, once again, ****jaquelinelittle**, who had also suggested shapechanging (chapter 5)**.**

**Hasta Mañana!  
**


	7. Halloween

**Prompt 6: Halloween**

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**Sorry that I'm not using a reader prompt for today, but it's a special occasion. Happy Halloween, everyone! Try not to hurt yourselves with sheer volumes of candy as I undoubtedly will...**

**Enjoy the story!  
**

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"Uhg, Pepper, _why_ are you making me do this?" Tony whined.

"Oh, be quiet," she snapped. "This will be good for your PR. Besides, you love flying around and showing off in the suit."

"Yeah, but that's when I'm saving the world, or installing heavy things on the building, or, y'know, doing _important_ things! I don't just run around in the suit willy-nilly!" he argued.

She shot him a leveling look.

"Usually," he corrected.

She continued to glare.

"Sometimes?" he tried.

"Do you even remember your birthday party?" she asked.

"That doesn't count! I thought I was gonna die! I did all sorts of stupid things that week!" he protested.

"You wore the suit to pick up Chinese food the other night," she reminded him.

"Yeah, but… okay, no, I don't have an excuse for _that_ one, but–"

"And you were wearing it yesterday while you were watching TV," she added.

"That was a, uh, scientific experiment," he explained. "I was testing the suit's capability to, well, sit for long periods of time."

Pepper rolled her eyes. "How is that a 'scientific experiment?'"

"I learned that my left butt cheek falls asleep after about an hour. So ha, science."

Pepper shook her head. "You're not getting out of this event," she told him.

"_Please!_" he begged.

"No."

"Fine. But if _any_ of those kids puke candy on me, I am out of there."

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Later that night, Tony was looking out one of his window walls in the Stark Tower penthouse. Below him, the tower was swarmed with people in costumes. The crowd fanned out an entire block in every direction, and though he couldn't be sure, it didn't even look like most of the people down there were even _with_ kids.

_Stupid Halloween_, he thought as he turned away from the window. He'd never enjoyed the holiday as a kid, and as he got older the only thing he liked about it was the half-naked women that threw themselves at him. Sure, he could get half-naked women at any time of year, but it was amusing to see them dressed up so ridiculously before he ripped their clothing off them. Pepper was dressed up tonight, but not in the fun way. She'd gone for witch, donning a long black dress, a big stupid hat, and a fake nose. It was a standard sort of costume, but he guessed she'd maxed out her creativity on orchestrating this whole event.

Tony was going as Iron Man, surprise surprise. His entry was timed to be any minute now. The lobby of his building had thirty-foot high ceilings, and a pane of glass had been removed from above the front doors for the night. He was going to fly off the balcony and swoop into the lobby through the ad hoc window, land next to Pepper, shoot a thing on the ceiling with his repulsers, and then spend the rest of the night giving candy to kids. _Uhg_.

It was five to six when his phone buzzed, and the text he received was from Pepper: 'You're up.'

He sighed. "We ready, J?"

"The suit is prepped," Jarvis replied.

"Let's do this."

* * *

The second the crowd saw blue lights at the top of Stark Tower, they began cheering. Tony spiraled down around the building, flying around more times than he needed to. Okay, maybe he _did_ like showing off in his suit… He flew in through the missing glass pane, and immediately noticed how different the lobby was. There was a stage of sorts in the back of the rooms. Most of the lights had been replaced with ultraviolet, save for the lights on the stage, probably so everyone could see their hero. Cotton mesh was strung everywhere like spiderwebs, and all sorts of Halloween decorations, from giant spiders to skeletons to zombies, were scattered throughout the room. Pepper stood on the stage, in front of a giant pile of bite-sized candy and holding a basket filled with candy that looked like a pumpkin. _God, her nose looks ridiculous_, he thought. It was one of those big plastic things with a mole on it with a little string that held it to her face. How cliché. He landed next to her, surrounded by lots of high-pitched cheers. He realized that the crowd in the building, unlike outside, was mostly children and their parents. Pepper must have arranged with security to only let in the kids at first. He waved at the kids, and they screamed even louder for him. _Maybe this isn't so bad…_ He raised one hand, slowly warming up the repulser for effect, then aimed it at the giant, spider-shaped piñata that hung from the ceiling where the chandelier usually hung. He shot the spider, and plastic toys rained down on the kids amidst orange and black confetti.

"What's in that things?" Tony asked Pepper.

"Plastic spiders, bugs, and lizards, those vampire fangs, bouncy balls that look like eyes, that sort of stuff," she answered

"Cute." Tony stepped up the mic, and retracted his facemask. An attendant handed him a big pumpkin shaped basket. "Who's ready for candy?!" He yelled to the kids.

He was answered by a chorus of screams.

"That's what I thought," he responded with his familiar, smug smile.

* * *

The night went by in a blur. Pepper and Tony handed candy to kids (many of whom were dressed as Iron Man, Tony appreciated) and assistants scurried to keep order in the crowd and make sure the pumpkin baskets were always full of candy. Tony complained to Pepper _a lot_ between sneaking pieces of his own candy (she kept having to swat his hand, which hurt her more than him seeing as he was wearing his gauntlets all night, and remind him that the candy was for the kids), but sometimes, when he thought she couldn't see him, she caught him smiling.

The doors finally closed at ten, when the kids were gone and only teenagers and adults were left, trying to shake the hand of the great Tony Stark. Tony flew back out through the window, partially because he wanted everyone outside to know that Tony Stark was leaving the party, and they might as well go home too, partially because it was the quickest way to the disassembly runway, and partially because "Fuck you, I'm Iron Man and I'll fly when I want." Pepper took the elevator.

"The cleanup crew has already started on the lobby," Pepper reported as she tossed her phone and recently removed nose onto at table. She kicked off her heels and sat down on their living room sofa. "It should be Halloween-free by tomorrow morning."

"Thank God!" Tony fell onto the sofa with over-exaggerated exhaustion, his head landing on Pepper's lap. He looked up at her pleadingly. "Never make me do that again."

She laughed. "Come on, Tony, how hard could that possibly have been?"

"How hard?! It was horrible, Pep! My feet are killing me!"

"Then maybe your next 'scientific experiment' should be to test the suit's capability to _stand_ for long periods of time," she suggested, running her fingers through his hair.

He closed his eyes, enjoying Pepper's fingers on his scalp. "Hmm, you may be on to something there."

"Come on, tell me you didn't enjoy tonight at all," she challenged.

"I didn't," he responded, not opening his eyes. "Except for the flying."

Pepper smiled knowingly. "I thought you might like an entrance like that."

"And, you know, it wasn't so bad when the kids would tell me I'm their hero," he admitted. He smiled before opening his eyes. "They're smart. I'm an amazing hero. Everyone should worship me like the kids in Iron Man costumes did." He thought for a moment. "Can we make a holiday? Iron Man day. It will be like Halloween, but everyone dresses up like me, and we can all drink scotch instead of eating candy."

Pepper rolled her eyes. "And for a second there, I thought you were being humble."

"Ew. Why would I do that?" he joked. He sat up and smiled, and when Pepper smiled in return, he kissed her. "Happy Halloween, Miss Potts."

"Happy Halloween, Mr. Stark."

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**So there's our first holiday special. I may or may not do special chapters for other holidays as they come along. We'll see...**

**I feel like I've seen a bunch of fics that involve Tony and children and it turns out Tony actually loves kids and he's great with them and gooey feels. However, I think that with the kind of person Tony is (and the sort of childhood I imagine he'd had as a child genius and generally feeling unloved by his father), he wouldn't really call an evening entertaining children a _good_ night. Regardless, I still think he could appreciate it to an extent, maybe even enjoy it just a bit. Still, I don't think he'd ever go out of his way to set up some event for kids or what-not.  
Anyway, rant over. Sorry about that.  
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**Thank you to everyone who reviews! You wonderful people, you.  
**


	8. Muffins

**Prompt 7: Muffins (Provided by Hanna)**

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**So it's been a while! So much for updating every day, right? That got sorta stressful, actually, so I'm cutting it back a bit...  
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**There's a lot we don't know about Clint and Natasha's characters in the movie-verse, so I sort of went with what I know about the characters from other continuities and from what was hinted at. I hope I did the two of them justice...**

**Enjoy!  
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Clint was in Stark's living room. The entire team had spent the night in the building after the battle for New York. Clint woke early, as he often does, so he got dressed and found his way to the mostly demolished living room. The couch seemed suitably non-destroyed, and a cool breeze came in through the broken windows as he sat on it.

Clint wondered if the rest of the team was up yet, but he realized he didn't really want to find out. Even if they were, he had no desire to see them. He often decided that he just needed time alone, and this was one of those times.

So he sat, brooding, for who knows how long before Natasha silently appeared next to him. She had a muffin in either hand, and without saying a word, she forcefully shoved one towards him.

Clint laughed. "So was making muffins a part of your SHIELD training, or did you learn it back in Mother Russia?" he asked, putting on his best (still horrible) Russian accent at the end.

Natasha rolled her eyes. "Pepper made them," she explained as she sat next to him on the sofa.

"I feel like that takes some of the symbolism out of the moment," he said, but he took the muffin from her anyway. "Thanks."

"This isn't about symbolism, Clint. It's about you."

"Oh yeah? What'd I do to deserve a non-symbolic muffin?" he asked, biting off a chunk of his muffin while Natasha refused to even unwrap hers.

"Tell me what's wrong," she demanded.

"Is that your way of telling me you're here for me or some crap, Tasha? "

"No, it's my way of telling you that you're going to tell me what's under your skin."

"So the muffin was to butter me up, eh? S'alright; it's a damn good muffin." He took another bite out of his. "Aren't you going to eat yours?"

"Clint," she insisted.

There was a pause, a long one. Clint stared at his muffin for a minute, not eating anymore of it, then said quietly, "It was so easy."

"What was?" Natasha prompted.

Clint thought it was funny, the way Natasha played therapist. It was always more like an interrogation than a conversation with a friend, but hell, he always felt better after talking to her in the past. "It was so easy for him to turn me against SHIELD. Tasha, you know who I am, and you know what I've done, and I finally…" He stopped, took a deep breath, and turned to look at Natasha. She wore the same poker face she always did, and to anybody else, her expression (lack of expression) might have been discouraging when it came to spilling their guts. But Clint knew Tasha. And he knew that the only reason she was sitting there at all was because she cared. Whether or not he could 'feel the love' was irrelevant. "I was finally doing some good, y'know. I was finally a part of something. And it was so easy for him to turn me against that."

"Not entirely," she argued. Clint raised an eyebrow at her, so she continued, "I saw the incident report from the base collapse. Loki told you to take down Fury, and you shot him in the chest, when we both know you should've gotten him between the eyes."

"Thanks. It's good to know that even my aim was off, too."

"Your aim wasn't off. Your aim is never off. You shot him in the chest on purpose. Everyone knows Fury wears a vest twenty-four seven. You refused to kill him for the same reason Selvig put a failsafe on the portal machine: You were in there. You'll always be in there, somewhere." She put poked his chest over his heart, and he laughed a little. "Besides, you're back now, so there's really no point in brooding over it. So get over yourself and eat your muffin," she said, as she finally took the first bite out of hers.

He smiled at her, bit his muffin, and through the food in his mouth said, "If you insist, Tasha."

They sat there and ate their muffins in silence for a few moments. Natasha finally broke it.

"We deserve a vacation."

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**I always thought it was weird at the end of The Avengers that Fury and Hill both say that _all_ the Avengers are gone. Weren't two of them agents? Did they not go back to work? So that last line is my means of explanation.**

**Anyway, I don't know if I did the two of them well. I tried to get Clint's sort of dry, cynical humor and Natasha's sort of 'no I don't have feelings' when she totally does. **

**I never know whether or not I ship these two, but either way, I believe they have a very deep understanding of each other and whether or not they _love_ each other, their relationship is very profound. I sort of tried to put that into this, but I don't know if it came across...**

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**Thank you everyone who follows, favorites, and reviews, and special thanks today for Hanna for today's prompt! She's reviewed for almost every chapter thus far! Either that or I have a lot of guest reviewers named Hanna... (Also, Hanna, if you're reading this, Muffins as a prompt was totally not too random at all!)  
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**Please review with prompts! It's nice to have a lot of options when it comes time to pick one :)**

**Ok, enough rambling! Until next time!  
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